Commission us

Parent Talk is an award-winning parenting advice service. Last year we supported 469,000 parents and carers through online advice and chat, including 9,000 one-to-one conversations. Together we can improve outcomes for families in your local area.

Why commission us?

As Local Authorities make the transition to the Family Hubs model, we can provide effective early intervention support for children and families. Parent Talk has flexible delivery models which are tailored to local needs and work in collaboration with existing services.

90%

of parents who used the 1:1 online chat rated the service as 4 or 5 out of 5

86%

of parents said they found content on the website useful

“I have a toddler and feel like I’m on a ride I can’t get off. Lately I’ve been having feelings of rage which isn’t like me at all. I feel like I can’t get back to normal after the pandemic, I’m still anxious about going out and feel so isolated and depressed.”

How we can help

We offer free support for parents and carers of children aged 0-19 in the UK. Where a child has special educational needs, we can support up to age 25.

We aim to provide a welcoming space for all parents and carers, whatever their background and experiences. Our advice articles offer guidance on a range of issues and our chat service is available for more in-depth support.

Our service is accredited by Helpline Standards, a nationally recognised quality standard. All our advice is provided by our experienced parenting coaches.

“The Parenting Coach was amazing. She offered more help to me in our short conversation than I’ve had in years of trying to get help for my son. I cannot thank her enough”

Partnership opportunities for commissioners

Many families have been unable to access support in the usual way since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Parent Talk ensures they can continue to get the support and reassurance they need.

The Parent Talk service is run by the charity Action for Children. If you already commission Action for Children family support services in your area, we can train workers on the Parent Talk service. If you don’t have Action for Children staff in your area, we can provide local family support staff.

What can we offer you If you partner with us, we will:

Share our expertise, knowledge and skills in delivering high quality and cost-effective family support.
Tailor the service delivery to the needs of families in your area. We can help Local Authorities to assess and understand local need and opportunities to provide remote support for families including early intervention and mental health support.
Blend this service into your Family Hub offer and collaborate with local services. We can co- create a plan for a local Digital Family Hub, which provides families with an easy-to- navigate digital front door to the services Local Authorities provide.
Provide local family support workers and train staff.
Be responsible for supervising the safeguarding process of families using the service.
Work within local authority safeguarding frameworks.
Provide online advertising targeting parents in your local area looking for support.
Deliver tailored reporting, data and insights on the use of the service, families needs, interventions and outcomes.

For more information please contact the team at: parenttalk@actionforchildren.org.uk

Our commissioners

Awards

“The initiative or service that has done the most to support whole families to help their children lead healthy, happy and fulfilling lives safe from harm.”

In 2021 the service won The Family Support Award in the Children’s and Young People Now Awards.